Breathe No More
by Fantasywriter14
Summary: Anakin is visited by an old friend... one that he thought he'd never see again. And the end result is less than pleasant. Anakin & Obi-Wan. AU Short Story.


_Disclaimer:__ This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by George Lucas. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended._

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Author's Note: Yeah... don't ask. I don't really know why I wrote this oneshot. It's pretty creepy if you ask me, but it kept me entertained for a few good minutes. I hope it does the same for you.

This story was written for a rather old challenge. I chose a sentence that had to be used in the story. You'll find out what that sentence was soon enough ;)

Enjoy! And, as always, feedback is appreciated!

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BREATHE NO MORE

"Never be late again, you will."

Anakin sighed, leaning against the doorframe with a look of upmost irritation on his face. He had never liked scoldings, and he never would, especially coming from that little green troll.

"Never again, Master. I promise."

"Promise, hmm?"

Master Yoda didn't seem convinced. His shriveled face scrunched up and he peered up at Anakin through narrow, heavy-lidded eyes, an expression that only succeeded in deepening his wrinkles and making him look all the more ridiculous. Anakin clapped a hand to his mouth to stifle his laughter.

"Funny is this, Padawan?"

"No, Master," said Anakin - a lie. "I'll never be late to class again. You have my word."

Yoda nodded, seemingly pleased. Even a High Council Member of the Jedi Order couldn't pick up on Anakin's lies. He was... gifted, and not just with a lightsaber. The shrunken creature muttered something to himself and tapped his gimmer stick on Anakin's knee-cap, causing the Padawan to jump back and yelp in pain. It was a friendly gesture, as Anakin had come to realize over the years, but it still hurt like hell.

"Hmph! Teach you not to bend the rules, that will. Next time, extra meditation hours, you will recieve."

"Yes, Master." Anakin tried to hide his smile as Yoda spun around and made his way - very slowly - down the hallway, disappearing around the corner a moment later. Anakin waited until he could no longer hear the tap-tap of his Master's gimmer stick on the wooden floor before he opened the door to his quarters and locked it behind him. He didn't want any more surprise visits tonight. One talk with that troll was more than enough for one day. Now wasn't the time for lengthy conversations and reprimanding. It was dinner time, and Anakin was _starving_.

His quarters were exactly the same as he had left them - bed unmade, dirty clothes laying in heaps on the floor, diagrams and holos scattered uselessly about the place. Anakin wasn't a neat person. He never had been, he never wanted to be. The cooling unit, much like the rest of the room, was also in disarray. The milk was expired, and he'd run out of meat and forgotten to buy more. If only he'd had time to eat in the cafeteria... Anakin silently cursed Yoda for that.

As he was digging through the cooling unit, trying to scrunge up any scraps he could find, a sound behind him caught Anakin's attention. It was a shuffling sound, not the sound made by heavy footsteps, but of light, swishing robes. Anakin didn't turn around. He was afraid of what he may find. Instead, he forgot about the noise, focusing instead on a bottle of Purple Fizz hidden behind the expired milk. It would have to do.

_Bang!_

He started and slammed the cooling unit door shut, spinning around to face the source of the noise. There was nothing but darkness. If there was ever a time that Anakin wished he had remembered to turn the lights on, it was then. The blackness of the room was eerie, giving him a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach - like his insides were being twisted.

Thu-thump. Thu-thump. His own heartbeat echoed in his head.

"Who's there?" he called out weakly. His voice didn't sound nearly as intimidating as he had intended; it was more of a rasp than anything else. His hand strayed to the lightsaber hooked to his belt. It was his final line of defense, only used in times of great distress. As far as Anakin was concerned, this _was_ a time of great distress. He unhooked the weapon, but before he pressed his thumb down on the ignition button, an invisible force pulled it out of his grip.

"You won't be needing that."

Anakin gasped, blue eyes widening. The owner of the voice, whoever it was, was standing in front of him - a few feet away, at least. Frantically, Anakin turned around, running in the opposite direction. The invisible force pulled him back and held him in place.

"Don't worry. There's nothing to be afraid of."

That voice sounded strangely familiar. Anakin had heard it before, long ago, when he had been a small boy. The name and face were just out of his reach. Tatooine, the Pod Race, that day he had left home... Obi-Wan! But no. It couldn't be. That wasn't possible.

"Obi-Wan?" he choked. The fear still gnawed at him. His gut wrenched, making him feel uneasy. "Is that you?"

"Yes."

The invisible grip loosened, and Anakin fell to the ground. His knees were no longer capable of supporting him. They felt like jelly. It took him a moment to regain his composure, and when he did, he stood up once more, searching the darkness for Obi-Wan.

He found him standing by the cooling unit. He'd stepped out of the darkness, and his body and face were bathed in a subtle glow. Anakin could make out his features easily now. He looked the same as when Anakin had seen him last, as far as he could remember - chestnut hair, longer now than it had been then, blue-green eyes, and a face wrinkled by old smile lines and sorrows. The only thing that had changed about him was his attire - now a plain, black cloak instead of brown. A thin layer of stubble had begun to grow on his chin. He hadn't shaved in a few days.

"I thought you were dead." It was the only thing that Anakin could think to say. In truth, it was all he could remember about Obi-Wan Kenobi. He had been killed that day on Naboo, along with Qui-Gon Jinn, the first Jedi Anakin had ever had the pleasure of meeting. If he remembered correctly, Qui-Gon had been a far more pleasant Jedi than that little green troll ever was. But Obi-Wan... He hardly remembered what Obi-Wan had been like at all.

"You would think that."

"What do you mean? What happened to you?" Anakin pursued, taking a step closer to Obi-Wan. He was still afraid - that much couldn't be helped. But at least he knew that this intruder could be trusted.

Obi-Wan's brow creased, his face suddenly twisting in anger. "Why do you want to know?"

"You _died_. There was no way you could have survived that fight. After we found Qui-Gon's body, we knew that--"

"But I did survive," Obi-Wan cut him off, but he didn't seem to notice. "Qui-Gon may not have been strong enough to defeat the Sith, but I was. Everyone thought I was dead... They were wrong." His face softened, and Anakin couldn't help but be reminded of the Obi-Wan he had been introduced to on Tatooine - the happy, smiling young man he had looked up to as a Jedi, along with Qui-Gon. "Tell me, Anakin, who is your Master now?"

Anakin smiled. "Master Yoda, "The Troll" himself."

Obi-Wan laughed at that. What first began as a soft chuckle escalated into a loud, hysterical fit of laughter. Anakin backed up a step, that familiar feeling in his stomach returning. There was something wrong with Obi-Wan. He wasn't the same man. He had _died_, and now here he was in Anakin's apartment, alive and well, a raving lunatic. What had happened to him?

"Ha! Master Yoda? You can't be serious." He reached up a hand to wipe a tear from his eye, still chuckling. "Qui-Gon was meant to be your Master, you know... and then he died. And before he died, he asked me to take his place - _me_, of all people. I was angry, then... Qui-Gon died in my arms, and his last words to me were "train the boy". All he ever cared about was you, Anakin. He wanted _you_." Obi-Wan's blue-green eyes had changed. They were different now - darker than usual. Anakin backed up another step. "I couldn't handle it. I ran away, hoping that I would be forgotten, that someday I could come home again and show them all... show them all that I'm better than _you_."

"You're..." His heart pounded in his head. He massaged his temples. Thu-thump. Thu-thump. He stumbled back, tripping over the kitchen table. Obi-Wan made no effort to go after him. "You're... You're a..." He couldn't say it. His voice was choked, his throat suddenly sore, preventing him from speaking clearly. When he finally did spit out the words, his tone was high-pitched - a squeak. "You're a Sith?"

Obi-Wan's mouth split into a demented grin, making Anakin shudder. "A Sith? I wouldn't quite call it that."

Some sort of new-found courage spurred Anakin to speak, to get through to Obi-Wan. He had to try. If Master Yoda were here, he would have tried to save him. Anakin was a Jedi. It was his _duty_.

"Obi-Wan, the Sith are evil! Don't you realize what you're doing?"

"Evil? From my point of view, the Jedi are evil." Obi-Wan was still smiling, his dark eyes flickering with devious amusement. "You are their prime example. Please, Anakin, don't make me kill you." He took a step forward, closing the distance between them, and Anakin knew that Obi-Wan was lost. The murderous glint in his eyes gave that away.

Anakin ran. He had never run so fast in his life. But Obi-Wan was faster. When Anakin reached the door, trying in vain to pull it open, he realized that he had locked it. Cursing, he fumbled with the dead-lock, but it was no use. Obi-Wan had already caught up to him.

"I'm sorry it had to end like this, Anakin. You always were meant for _great_ things."

The red blade slid through his body effortlessly, gliding through skin, snapping tendons, burning him from the inside out. Anakin screamed, releasing his grip on the dead-lock as he slid uselessly to the floor. Obi-Wan's lightsaber was still embedded in his back. The smell of burned flesh filled Anakin's nostrils, and he gagged, choking on his own blood. It tasted vile... but that was the least of his worries.

Thu... thump. Thu... thump...

"What will Master Yoda think of his Chosen One now, I wonder? Don't worry. I won't tell him who killed you."

Obi-Wan laughed maniacally, but his own heartbeat was the only sound that Anakin heard. It was fading... slowing...

"You're... insane..." he managed, gritting his teeth against the pain.

Obi-Wan gave the lightsaber a quick jerk, and Anakin cried out when the hot blade left his body, scorching his insides and tearing through ligaments. Dark blood pooled about him.

"From a certain point of view."

Thump... thump... thump...

His inhaled deeply, but no exhale came. He was dying. His heartbeat had faded completely, replaced only by silence. Anakin's blue eyes glazed over, staring up at his murderer, and his mouth opened in an eternal scream.

Then he died.

_Finis_

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End Note: And yes, that last sentence _was_ the challenge sentence. Pretty twisted, huh? Don't question my sanity :)


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